


it’s that good things don’t happen to heroes

by stardustsx



Category: Dream SMP - Fandom, Minecraft (Video Game), Video Blogging RPF, mcyt
Genre: Anarchy, Angst, Antarctic Empire, Blood, Dave | Technoblade and Wilbur Soot and TommyInnit are Siblings, Dream is a villain, Gen, Hurt No Comfort, Implied/Referenced Self-Harm, Kinda, POOG, Philza is an avian hybrid, SPOILERS FOR NOVEMBER 29TH STREAM!!!!, Self-Harm, Self-Hatred, Toby Smith | Tubbo & TommyInnit Friendship, TommyInnit Angst (Video Blogging RPF), TommyInnit Swears (Video Blogging RPF), Traitor TommyInnit (Video Blogging RPF), Treason, Villain Clay | Dream (Video Blogging RPF), Villain Technoblade, Wilbur Soot and Technoblade and TommyInnit are Siblings, Wilbur Soot and Technoblade are Piglin Hybrids, Wilbur Soot and Technoblade are Siblings, corrupt tubbo, corrupt tubbo arc, give me sleepy bois angst yeee, im SO intruiged by this arc, l'manberg, l'manburg, mentioned wilbur's death so i will not post it as major character death, not in the usual way tho, of its potential at least, or the broken part of it, villain tommy, villain tommy arc, will put more if i remember/write more
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-30
Updated: 2021-02-14
Packaged: 2021-03-09 23:34:31
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 7
Words: 5,537
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27794674
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/stardustsx/pseuds/stardustsx
Summary: Everything went to shit.Again.Honestly, he really didn’t mean to burn George’s house — he even tried to stop the fire! — he just wanted to steal something. And, okay, maybe stealing wasn’t the best, but… he had to check.in other words; a re-telling of how tommy's exile could've gone.
Relationships: Tubbo & Tommyinnit, but only friends - Relationship, except maybe - Relationship, talk to me about ships and i will strangle you they're MINORS, there are none here
Comments: 42
Kudos: 587





	1. I

Everything went to shit. _Again._

Honestly, he really didn’t mean to burn George’s house — he even tried to stop the fire! — he just wanted to steal something. And, okay, maybe stealing wasn’t the best, but… he had to check. He _had_ to check if his discs maybe ended up there. No matter the cost. Getting Ranboo entangled into this mess was just another mistake, too.

He simply didn’t want to do it alone (like a lot of other things recently). And then he was in the court. Cleared Ranboo, so the Enderman hybrid wouldn’t have to answer to the law either.

And then. And, _fucking_ , then.

The 2nd of December happened.

 _“I’m sorry, Tommy, but for what you’ve done, I declare you exiled from L’Manberg,”_ Tubbo said, echo of his words clear in Tommy’s mind. “ _You have until sunset to get any personal belongings. And if anyone sees you in the bounds of this country after then, they’re legally bound to report you.”_

Tommy hit the nearest tree with his fist, tears of anger already forming under his eyelids. On Nether and End, he did _so much_ for them, and yet— _and yet_ —

He shivered. As if automatically, he pulled on Wilbur’s coat tighter around himself (the same coat his brother _died_ in, still dirty with his blood, which Tommy stole from Eret’s stupid museum the night he left L’Manberg. And if Eret saw him then but ignored, he would never admit that he was grateful to him).

It was bloody cold, with winter being almost there, and he also wandered into a snowy biome. He was, quite literally, _freezing_ his ass off. Tommy’s been walking like that — cold, cursing, haunted by the smell of blood — for days now. He _already_ had to fight the phantoms two nights in a row.

 _And it was all Dream’s fault_.

When his house got blown up, no one cared. But the moment _he_ made a mistake, _he_ did something accidentally, _he_ got called out. Unsurprisingly, everyone conveniently seemed to forget how he said that he wouldn’t be the VP _until_ he got his disks back. And how did this end up?

There was nothing, _nothing_ in that world that Tommy craved more than to see Dream kneel in fear before him. _Nothing more_. But he was alone, awfully weak and underprepared. He’d have to survive first, and then spend _weeks_ grinding to get decent stuff. Months, if he wanted to get back to L’Manberg.

Techno was right, and he was _wrong_. Techno was fucking _right_ with wanting to overthrow all governments. For Nether— why couldn’t he see it earlier? It’d most definitely help him earlier. He’d stop it from forming when he was the president for those five stupid minutes. And maybe he wouldn’t lose another brother then, too.

And it was so fucking cold…

Something blinked in the corner of Tommy’s eye. He repeated his head’s movement, and— a village. Behind the forest, there was a _village_.

Tommy would cry if not the fact that first, he had to get there. It was so close, _so stupidly close_.

So he started walking.


	2. II

Tommy didn’t get to walk too far before getting attacked.

He was cold, exhausted, and hasn’t eaten a good meal in days. He took some bread when he left L’Manburg, but finished it a while ago; and the only animals he saw were small chickens (and they ran from him the moment he got close enough). At this point, he could barely stay up, lacking any strength.

The village (which seemed to be a lot closer earlier) was good 500 meters away. Tommy doubted he could make 100 in this forest, especially since it was the middle of the night, and he was surrounded by hostile creatures.

Tommy got one lucky move, slipping his sword exactly between the ribs of a skeleton, which poofed. There was another one in the distance, and a zombie coming up from his right. He kept his shield between him and the arrow, and tried to attack the undead mob, but failed.

The zombie jumped at him.

And a second later it poofed.

From what he could hear, the skeleton also must’ve been destroyed, but… who did it? He stood up and moved the shield to his side, trying to ignore the sudden lightheadedness from it, and looked around.

Tommy hasn’t seen him in a couple of weeks, but it didn’t matter, since his brother hasn’t changed at all. Technoblade stood there, with a sword in hand and looking straight at him. He didn’t seem happy or even relieved that Tommy survived. For a moment they just looked at each other in silence, but then his oldest brother moved abruptly.

In a split second, the side of Techno’s sword was pressed to his neck, slightly digging into the skin. He could breathe quickly, but when he tried to take a deeper breath— it only made him bleed, since his brother was holding the weapon so close.

“Tell me, Tommy,” Technoblade started, his voice low (lower than usual; more dangerous, which only freaked Tommy more). “One reason for why I shouldn’t just kill you on the spot. I cannot afford you going back to L’Manberg and ratting my position out. I know there is a bounty on my head.”

For a couple seconds — which felt like an eternity, in which he couldn’t breathe, couldn’t speak, couldn’t– couldn’t _live_ — Tommy had no idea how to reply. How could he convince Techno?

And then, as if a lighting struck, and he knew.

“Because _you were right,_ ” he blurted out; more nervously than he’d like to admit. “You were _right_ about the governments, and corruption, and power, and—“

Techno’s hand dropped, the sword lowering down. Tommy took a deep breath and barely kept himself from falling over. His brother’s face — usually stoic, never changing — for a split second showed another emotion. He wasn’t sure what it was, but judging after the other reactions… was he shocked?

But then he exhaled and barely noticeably smiled.

“I wouldn’t have thought that _you_ of all people would change your mind,” he admitted. “Come here. We’ll go to my new house.”

Techno’s new house was just a village library, where he put all of his stuff and a bed. It was better than nothing, Tommy admitted, but didn’t seem like a lot. In the moment they got inside, Techno went outside once again, only to come back with a _rabbit stew._

“Here.” He handed it over to the younger boy. “Eat it. After you finish, I’m intrigued as to why have you changed your mind?”

The stew was easily the best meal he’s had in over… two months? Three? He wasn’t sure. He ate it in just minutes, not caring that it was steaming hot. 

Just a couple of moments later he was already explaining the situation.

Tommy started talking with the topic of Wilbur — how he came back as a ghost, as a shadow of who he once was. Forgetting most of the stuff and being completely not like… Wilbur. Techno’s mouth was paper-thin while hearing about it. Then he moved onto the situation with George’s house.

“I just— they fucking _exiled_ me, Techno! _Dream made them exile me!_ And Tubbo— he— he didn’t even question if exile could be too much of a punishment. I didn’t even _mean_ to burn George’s house, and yet— yet it all happened, and—” Tommy felt two strong hands holding his arms. A couple seconds later, they forced him to sit down on the bed behind. He looked up. Techno was looking straight at him.

“I think— it feels like Dream is trying to control Tubbo,” he murmured at last. “I _told_ them that I don’t want to be a VP until I get my disks back, but it was as if they forgot about it. Techno— is this presidency over L’Manberg cursed or some other shit? Literally— all— all presidents up to date— I don’t want Tubbo to get hurt by it all. Not after Wilbur…”

“Tommy.” Techno kneeled right in front of him, to be on the same eye level. “I cannot promise you that L’Manburg in any way can be saved. I cannot promise you that Tubbo will be alright. I cannot promise you that you can make them listen, at least not alone. But I _can_ promise you, that as long as there’ll be no other government to rule over it, I _will_ help you achieve whatever you’d want to. Do you understand?” He pressed on the last sentence.

Tommy nodded, and in the next moment he remembered what he wanted. His eyes burned, with anger, frustration, and passion; for his country that abandoned him, for his friend who didn’t listen to him, and for his brother, who insanity has taken away too early. Too fucking _early._

“I want to make Dream listen,” he whispered. “I want to make him _scared._ I just want— _need_ to see him scared, scared of what I could do to him. Is this— is it too much?”

“If that’s what you want, then let’s get you prepared, so that you will be able to do so,” his brother replied almost right away, standing up. “And you can be sure that I’ll be by your side. But now, sleep. I doubt you had a good rest ever since they left you out there to freeze.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i am not exactly proud of this one. it is not as good as it could be, alas. i don't exactly have the energy to change it in any way or form.
> 
> i hope you enjoyed it anyway tho!! and i can't wait to see all your reactions!!


	3. III

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> if ANY of those things heavily triggers you, i advise you don't read the chapter:
> 
> blood  
> self-harm (not the most common one though)  
> suicidal thoughts  
> self-hatred

He has been staring at the lava lake below.

It was a relatively new thing. Ever since Techno basically took him in, they both spent their days mostly in the Nether. For his brother it was a home dimension, after all. For him, though…

Tommy knew it was dangerous to walk around the main portal. Someone could’ve gone through it at anytime, which could’ve ended up in his death, but he didn’t care. He just didn’t care anymore.

His legs were dangling from the ledge, and he was leaning slightly outwards, to the open space; though still holding the Netherrack tightly with his fists. In all ways that it was dangerous, it was also calming. Something about all of this, with the quiet cries of Ghasts and rumbling of the Pigmen around made the Nether the most soothing place he could be in.

As far as he knew, Techno was off somewhere either trying to get Netherite or bartering with his half-brethen. Tommy was wasting all the minutes, hours, just staring at anything and waiting for his brother to come back. 

After all, most monsters were more forgiving of hybrids than humans. It wasn’t safe for him at all, while it was for Technoblade.

Tommy was angry at Wilbur. If he didn’t die, nothing like this would happen. If Wilbur (the _real_ Wilbur, and not the shade of him that Ghostbur was) was still there, he’d never get thrown out, he’d never—

_“In a time like this, when a man has nothing to lose…”_

Wasn’t it exactly his position right now? So, _so_ painfully similar to his older brother’s. He had absolutely nothing left to lose. Tubbo exiled him, Dream turned everyone against him, Quackity was— Fundy— Wilbur– _Phil–_

Everyone but Technoblade has left him. Every single person he thought of as his friend has left him, with no exceptions. Niki wasn’t there, Ranboo maybe tried– but it was too late. It was too fucking late.

All because of Dream.

_“d’yknow what that means?”_

Tommy pulled the coat tighter around him. He still hasn’t bothered cleaning it; it still had the sword gash in the back, still filthy with Wilbur’s blood. It’s been _weeks._

But how could he rid of the last thing that tied him to his brother?

How could he?

~~_He couldn’t._ ~~

If only he tried harder, if only he _noticed_ that Wilbur was heading into his own grave with what he was doing… maybe then he wouldn’t be in this fucked up situation. If only.

**_“it means we can do what we want.”_ **

Pain overtook his thoughts in the next second. Where did it come from? His gaze focused back on his hands.

They were bleeding.

The palm of his right hand was torn open, somehow; the blood oozing out steadily. He glanced at it blankly and hummed. A couple of short breaths later, Tommy clenched it.

It was painful, _so painful,_ but in some twisted way it made him feel better. The spiral of thoughts about his brother went away — not disappeared, it could never disappear — but was noticeably quieter. His fingers were stained red.

He was just a human. Just one human in a world of monsters and hybrids, and other magical things. What could he even _do_?

Tommy wanted revenge, but how in the world could he deliver it?

**_H e w a s j u s t a h u m a n ._ **

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!!!!! i haven't posted here in a while. so i decided that i'll give u all this chapter, as a treat. it's short, i'm sorry for it, but,, this work just makes me write short chapters idk why.
> 
> i have ideas (and a scene that i think is cool) that i'd like to put out there in one of the next chapters too. if i continue. but i think i will
> 
> i hope you guys had an amazing day! hope you're doing good too! <3
> 
> my twitter: @stardustsx
> 
> fun fact: i've listened to "The Mad King Wilbur" 41 times while writing it. it took me way too long to write it lol


	4. IV

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> happy new year guys!! i speedran writing it to be done before mrbeast's rewind premiered so it might be bad. or feel rushed. and i'm sorry for it
> 
> i don't think there are any things here that are TW worthy, so i'm just going to tell you all to enjoy!!
> 
> also this chapter is painfully short (as all earlier ones) but the next one has 1) one scene i'm INCREDIBLY proud of 2) so much action that it'll probably be longer. can't wait to share it with you guys

His hand has been twitching for the past couple of days, no matter how many potions of regeneration he took. He guessed it might’ve been that awful cut he somehow got, especially since only after Techno noticed that he was _bleeding,_ it was taken care of.

For some reason, Tommy’s grown utterly reckless with everything, but he couldn’t bring himself to care about it. What was to happen would happen anyway, so what was the point in trying to stop anything?

Taking out a stack of gapples from a chest in Techno’s storage, he nervously turned around after a small rumbling sound echoed from the floor above. Soon after it a curse followed, and a couple more, even louder sounds joined in right after.

Tommy froze. Was he discovered? Technoblade probably suspected already that he did something to his things, didn’t he… right? But then again, there would be a difference between him knowing and him catching him in the process…

_—won’t hurt itll be okay technobro—_

“Tommy!” Technoblade shouted — what was that emotion in his voice? — and looked through the trapdoor. “Can you give me gunpowder, scutes, ghast tears, sugar and netherwart?! I need it for right now!”

“Whoa, whoa, big man, what’s going on?!” Tommy took a step back and raised his hands. Techno’s hair was messy, and his eyes were clearly jumping between looking at at least three different things. What could even make his brother react like that?

“I don’t have the time— Tommy, just give me the things!”

“What’s happening?” he demanded. He deserved to know. Right?

“Phil messaged me, there are– Quackity, Fundy, Ranboo and Tubbo, they’re heading here, and I doubt it’s with a peaceful demand. Now hand me all I asked you for since I don’t plan on dying!”

Dumbfounded, Tommy gave him those things almost right away. He’s never seen his brother in such a state.

But… revenge? That didn’t sound like Tubbo. That didn’t sound like him at _all_. Ranboo… Tommy didn’t know him that well, but the Enderman hybrid never struck him as a one that craved it either. Fundy and Quackity however… he didn’t even want to know what they could have planned.

“Techno!” he called out after his brother and ran to the ladder. Jumping up, over three steps, he was above in less than ten seconds. “Can I help you in any way?”

The piglin hybrid turned around abruptly, freezing for a second after seeing Tommy. With brows furrowed and such a confident stance, Techno couldn’t just ignore him.

“I don’t know what they did to Dad,” he murmured, his deep voice as if burying everything around them. “Or what they could do to him. Take— there should be invisibility potions somewhere here. Take some, take my trident and go to L’Manburg through the ocean. Or through the Nether. Then tell me if he’s safe. Alright?”

Tommy nodded. Techno threw the trident, and so he caught it mid-air. Strapping it across his back, right after that he headed back down in a hurry. He _had_ seen some invisibility potions within all other ones… they were there. For sure.

An hour later, one son was on his way to make sure his father was safe, while the other son was trying to think his way out of doing what the voices wanted him to do.

Everything was good just half a day earlier; why did everything have to go to absolute shit wherever Tommy was?

He didn’t know. And at this point, he didn’t think he wanted to know.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hello and i hope you liked this chapter!!! i can't wait to see your comments and opinions. love u guys!!
> 
> come talk to me on twitter if you want to — @stardustsx . you can also send fanart of this fic there,,, if any of you ever draws some,,, 
> 
> have a good day! <3


	5. V

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tommy is in L'Manberg, but it's awfully empty. What happens now?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hello and i'm sorry you had to wait so long skdhfsj i have an important exam tomorrow and i was learning for it a _lot_ , didn't have this much time to write. good news, this chapter is 1000 words long! so it's twice as long as usual!!!! i hope you emjoy it!!!

The travel to L’Manberg was all blurry in his mind; as if just a couple of minutes passed, and not over two hours. His mind was purely focused on keeping the trident in his hand, grasping it so tight that his knuckles were snow-white. At least he wasn’t all wet, considering that the enchantment kept the user dry as long as they kept the tool in their hands.

But, once he was less than a kilometer away from where he  _ shouldn’t _ be, he had to use his first invisibility potion.

L’Manberg was quiet; practically silent, a stark contrast to what it once has been. The obsidian walls that surrounded the country on the day of his exile were gone, too. It seemed wrong. All seemed wrong in an awful rightness. Where was everyone? Besides the four that headed to his brother, there was still Niki, Purpled, Jack, and others… and yet the only things he could hear was the soft breath of the wind touching the trees around and carrying the sound of his own footsteps.

Where was Phil? The most obvious answer would be his house, but… Tommy walked a bit closer to the left side of the town square, where most of the houses stood. There was something else though, on the central part of the wooden ground, something that reached so high that he had to sharply raise his head upwards. A raised podium, with a spire and some… redstone mechanism?

Whatever it was, the metal cage at the bottom of it did  _ not _ seem welcoming.

Shaking his head, Tommy silently moved closer to Phil’s house and gently opened the door. Nobody ever bothered with closing any doors with more protective locks or anything, so it was just a matter of gently touching the handle.

It was empty. There was no one there, not on the bottom, nor on the first floor. It was empty. Only an armor stand stood in the middle of the room, with—

What was that thing?

Furrowing his brows, Tommy crouched next to it. Curiosity taking over him, he nudged it with his finger. It didn’t do anything. There was a small, red dot that kept lighting on and off every couple of seconds on the main, square and thick part of it, which had a metal clam attached to it. He’s seen something like that, at least once before. He was sure of it.

_ You whisper to Technoblade: I think they put Dadza under house arrest or something.  _

_ You whisper to Technoblade: Theres an ankle monitor on an armor stand in the middle of his house. Only I am inside. I have no idea where he could be. _

Tommy waited, a minute, two, ten, but no reply came. It worried him, a bit. With all the bad things he could say about his brother, he  _ couldn’t _ say that Technoblade ignored people. He  _ always  _ replied to messages. No matter how dumb they could be; and this one was serious.

Something bad must’ve been happening back in the shack. There was no other possible explanation.

Why did he leave? He could’ve stayed and help Techno, and now… he was wasting his time. What if his brother actually needed some help? What if he was in— he  _ was _ in danger. Technoblade  _ was _ in danger, and Tommy couldn’t help him at all.

But Philza was also missing, and what, just what could he actually do? He couldn’t go back; it would take too much time that he didn’t have. But staying there was also pointless…

Tommy had no idea what to do. No option related to going back home seemed right enough to actually risk it. That left one possibility; staying, until someone came  _ here _ .

And as much as he hated it, the only thing he could do was to wait.

***

Around three hours later something  _ finally _ happened. Quiet footsteps from the bottom reached Tommy’s ears. Without a second to spare he splashed himself with an invisibility potion (he didn’t use any while there was no one else inside; he wouldn’t waste them like that, he had some management skills left. Besides, prolonged use of potions could have  _ really _ bad effects. He didn’t want to test his luck).

Whoever that was, they went completely silent in the exact moment he did it. A murmur of metal rang to his ears, which surprised him in only the slightest bit.

“Whoever you are,” a voice rang through the bottom floor, low, but stern, " _sh_ _ ow yourself _ . And maybe I will decide to be merciful.”

_ It was Phil. _

His reflexes worked faster than he could comprehend whatever was happening. One moment he was still at the level, the next he was standing right in front of his father, breathing fast, tears dangerously close to appearing in his eyes.

Phil looked around, clearly hearing the sound of someone walking, but not quite recognizing it.

“Dad—” his voice broke, and Phil’s sword fell out of his hand. “Wait— wait a minute.”

Straight away, he took out a small bottle of milk from his pouch and drank it as fast as he could.

The man laughed, just laughed; something about his voice seeming so broken, when he closed his eyes and covered mouth, when his hollow laughs turned into pure sobs. There was something else in them though, but he couldn’t exactly pin-point what.

“Tommy…” he whispered after a moment, walking closely to him, and, immediately, embraced him. A hand came over to his hair, ruffling it gently, and even though Tommy was much taller than his father, it wasn’t awkward at all.

Tommy practically melted into the hug, the hidden tears showing themselves. He missed it. He missed it so damn  _ much _ . His dad’s wings engulfed them both around; the quiet ruffle of feathers bringing him back to days that have passed even if just for a short while.

“Everyone here thinks you’re dead,” Philza said gently, a few seconds after they both calmed down a bit. “Tubbo came here one day, crying, and… I don’t know where he heard that from. But, Tommy, I thought I lost you too– and after Wilbur…”

“I’m okay, dad,” he murmured in reply. “I– I’m alive. I live with Techno, he told me to come here after he got your message earlier, and– you weren’t here, but I decided to wait, and–”

“You’re safe.” Phil sighed with relief. After such a long while, he finally let go of Tommy, folding his wings and taking a couple steps back. “You’re safe, and that’s what matters. That’s all I need to know.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i hope you guys enjoyed it! next chapter will be _really _important, so you might want to subscribe to the story to see what happens :DD every comment you all leave here is really appreciated and makes me so so happy; it's truly the best food an author can get. comments.__
> 
> __love you all. if you wanna talk about something, dm me on twitter! i'm @stardustsx on there_ _


	6. VI

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “They’re bringing Techno here, for a _trial_ ,” Philza said once they both calmed down from the emotions of their reunion. The hybrid looked out of the window, at the contraption standing on the town square. Tommy’s gaze followed his.  
> “That thing doesn’t look like it’s for a trial,” he murmured in reply.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hello and i am so so sorry for the long break!! i really didn't plan it to be like this, and i hope this chapter will make it a bit better. i had to cut it off cause it was getting kinda long too, lol
> 
> hope you enjoy it!!!
> 
> also thanks so much to mun for beta-ing a part of this chapter <33

“They’re bringing Techno here, for a _trial_ ,” Philza said once they both calmed down from the emotions of their reunion. The hybrid looked out of the window, at the contraption standing on the town square. Tommy’s gaze followed his.

“That thing doesn’t look like it’s for a trial,” he murmured in reply. “It looks more like an…”

“Execution stage?” His father finished in his place. “Agreed. They— I never thought they’d actually attempt to do something. I never thought Quackity would go as far as convincing everyone else to do it.”

“Wait, Quackity?” His head turned to look back at Phil again, with eyebrows furrowed. “And Tubbo just went with that? Just agreed?”

“Tommy…” Phil took a moment to put his hand on his son’s arm. “I’m afraid that Tubbo’s power is only on paper now. Quackity took over basically everything, and Tubbo doesn’t even realize that.”

“No!” The boy shook his head and took a couple steps back, throwing the hand off. “Tubbo wouldn’t— Quackity wouldn’t—!”

“He _did_ though, Tommy.”

The father and the son stood together, looking at each other; one’s eyes filled with sadness, the other’s filled with anger. A minute, five, ten has passed, and the silence stayed.

It only broke when something outside has rumbled, as if a couple voices were speaking at the same time.

They were steadily growing louder, too.

“Drink another Invis potion, _now_ ,” Philza ordered Tommy, voice stern. The boy didn’t even hesitate, immediately drinking it. The avian moved towards his balcony, opening the door, and looking outside.

Tommy sneaked out from behind his still bandaged wings, gently jumping down on the podium, hoping that the sound would be muted by the voices. Phil, apparently, didn’t notice, still looking for the source of the ruckus.

“I’m gonna put Carl where he belongs.” That was Quackity, for sure. He drove on Techno’s horse, through the town’s square, where some other civilians started gathering. Tommy went right beside them, closer to the center.

Technoblade was being guided in chains by Tubbo and Fundy, towards the execution stage.

How did they capture him…? He wasn’t one to be held by mere chains, and yet somehow they had him in them? It couldn’t be possible.

Something else must’ve been going on there, too. He was sure of that.

“You actually got him.” Phil’s voice thundered throughout L’Manberg, and everyone froze. All the capturers, the civilians (even the ones walking towards the plaza from all sides of the city) and even Techno himself. The Piglin hybrid turned around and faced his father, face seemingly monotone.

“Phil, what did they _do_ to you?” he asked, voice low and chill, but Tommy could hear a hint of fear, too. “Phil— _what did they do_ —?”

“He’s under house arrest, Technoblade.” Tubbo interrupted, making Techno turn around to face him. “For betraying L’Manberg. You should be glad it’s the only punishment he’s under.”

“You’ll leave Phil alone!” the warrior roared and his hands moved, as if he wanted to bring out a weapon that wasn’t there. The entire crowd (which at this point seemed to be close to a couple of hundred people) all moved backwards, as if preparing for a blow that would never come.

Everyone but Tommy did. He only moved forward.

“Leave Phil alone!” he repeated, even louder this time. “Just take _me_ instead!”

“If you attempt doing _anything_ that could end up being a danger to everyone here, we will shoot you on the spot.” Quackity stopped him from walking towards Ranboo, with a hand kept in front of him.

“Technoblade, follow me, please.” Tubbo ordered, heading towards the execution stage.

Tommy’s heart dropped.

“Hey, shouldn’t I be given a chance to defend myself?!” His older brother seemed to agree, becoming all-defensive. “What is this— a Zoo?”

“Come up here,” Q pressed. Techno moved towards them, lips as thin as a page of paper. “Get in the cage.”

Without a word, Techno walked into it. Tubbo closed the cage’s door right away.

Quackity grinned.

“I can’t help but think that the whole ‘ _trial_ ’ thing,” the piglin made the quotation marks with his fingers, “is just a farce, and you’ve already determined the outcome.”

“This is not actually a trial, Technoblade.” Happiness in the vice-president’s voice was easily hearable. “When we pull a lever, it’s going to fall down on you, and it’s going to fucking kill you.”

“You know, I only see some wood there—”

“Technoblade, there’s an anvil up there.” Tubbo cut him off. “This is an execution.”

Whispers appeared in the evergrowing crowd around them. From what Tommy could hear, some people supported the decision, but most seemed against it. Not letting someone have a trial was inhumane. Simply inhumane.

“Technoblade has robbed our country,” the president turned to face his citizens. “Robbed it of everything that made it special, of everything that defined what it was. He stepped in when he shouldn’t have.”

Tommy _had_ to stop them.

He had some TNT, some potions of slowness and snowballs on him, which could help divert the attention to let Techno escape, but it would _also_ pose a risk of outing him to everyone. The potion’s effect would wear off soon, too.

He didn’t want to risk it, but he also didn’t want to lose another brother.

So the final choice was easy.

“He brought in chaos, he ruined the government— who’s throwing those snowballs?” Tubbo furrowed his brows. Tommy smirked, taking out two splash potions of Slowness II and threw them and the group that brought Techno in. They started shouting.

And the chaos ensued.

People started screaming and running away, in a wild mind hive the moment Tommy started placing the TNT around the stage. Quackity was screaming somewhere behind him, and he was pretty sure somebody else was already breaking it right after him, but he didn’t care.

He just needed to give Techno some time. That was it.

Everyone was running in any directions but closer to the square, away from the cabinet, away from the execution stage. One quick look at Philza told Tommy that he seemed glad for this commotion to happen, but then—

“Pull the lever, Quackity!” Tubbo shouted.

“No!” Tommy screamed, hand reaching out to the cage his brother was in, running, to get as close as possible. Faintly, he could hear his father mimic the same word.

The lever was brought down and the anvil fell.

But Technoblade never dies.

And a second later, Tommy's invisibility potion's effect ran out. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> comments are authors' best food so please share them if you have any opinions or questions about the fic!! i'll be happy to talk with you about it!! :DDD
> 
> i really hope you enjoyed it! you can write to me on twitter (@stardustsx) or here in the replies! love u guys lots!!! <33


	7. VII

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> An enchanted netherite sword appeared in Tommy’s hand, kept low, but ready to attack just in case, as he walked back a bit. He had to play it safely, somehow, or at least try to give himself more time. Even a couple of minutes; at this point anything mattered.
> 
> He’d get out of this alive, with Phil, no matter what.
> 
> _He had to._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> first of all i am so so sorry this one's so short. i really hoped it'd be longer, but,,, it just felt right for it to be this short? i promise the next one will be longer!!! promise!!!!!!!!
> 
> anyways i hope you all enjoy it!! :DD

It felt like all stopped, as if the nature had to pause to take a breath. Techno disappeared from Tommy’s view, which was  _ good _ , that hopefully meant he was going somewhere safe, and he could focus on more important things.

Like the fact that he was currently in the middle of the fucking enemy ground. With no armor and almost no equipment that he could potentially use to fight.

And even though their attention was currently on him, at least it gave Technoblade a chance to survive.

~~_ And as much as Tommy hated to admit it, he couldn’t afford to lose another sibling. He wouldn’t survive that. Not the second time _ . ~~

“Tommy…?” Tubbo practically whispered, taking one shy step towards him, reaching out with his hand. “How—  _ how _ —?”

An enchanted netherite sword appeared in Tommy’s hand, kept low, but ready to attack just in case, as he walked back a bit. He had to play it safely, somehow, or at least try to give himself more time. Even a couple of minutes; at this point anything mattered.

He’d get out of this alive, with Phil, no matter what.

_ He had to. _

“You’re alive?” Ranboo asked quietly and Tommy’s eyes flickered to the hybrid, for only a second or two. “We’ve heard…”

“Dream said you’re dead,” Tubbo stated. A tear and another left his eyes, as he tried to get closer and closer to his friend. “Dream said—”

“Well it’s no wonder why it’s bullshit then, if Dream said it,” Tommy practically spat those words out. The (way smaller now) crowd blew up in whispers. “And, as you can see, I’m clearly alive. Any explanation why did you just try to murder my brother would be appreciated, though.”

“He betrayed L’Manberg. Used Withers against this country. Tommy, why– why are you defending him?”

The president’s voice was trembling and small, almost vulnerable. The blonde’s first thought was to just hug him, tell him that he was being stupid, but– he couldn’t. Not after this.

“He’s my brother—”

“He blew up L’Manberg!”

“ _ You tried to execute him _ !”

“ _ After _ he set Withers on here! Why can’t you– we as a country couldn’t let Technoblade get away with no reparations for doing what he’s done! And now you… you placed TNT right here? And was with him?” He stopped speaking, standing right in front of his friend. “Tommy, you… you’re becoming the next Wilbur.”

Silence overtook them. Tommy stumbled backwards, hurt clear in his eyes for a short moment. It seemed like the world waited for the two of them to do something, with everything being so quiet that heartbeats could be heard. A minute passed, and, finally, someone spoke.

“What’s so bad about being the next Wilbur if you’re already the next Schlatt?” Tommy practically whispered. “Tubbo— you can’t do that. You can’t attempt to execute my living brother without a trial, you can’t imprison my father for nothing, and then expect me to stay fucking neutral. You just— you  _ can’t just do shit like this _ !”

“Tommy—”

“Is it all meant to be like  _ this _ , now? Me versus you?” he didn’t let his old friend finish. The silence around them only grew when no one else dared to speak. Tommy pointed the tip of his sword right at Tubbo’s chest. “Let me  _ and  _ Phil both go. Or I will  _ not _ stop at just words.”

“Would you wage war against L’Manberg?” The older teen asked, voice turning deathly serious in a span of seconds. “If I don’t let you nor Phil go?”

Tommy only glanced back at his father for a split moment, and then returned to look at Tubbo, with eyebrows knitted, and a stubborn gaze.

“For my family?” he questioned. Tubbo nodded.

“Without a second to spare.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> well, that was it! i hope you enjoyed it! also happy valentines day!! :DD
> 
> also, did you know that a writer's best food are comments? if you have some opinions or questions you can ask them in the comments!! or on my twitter — i'm @stardustsx on there! :D

**Author's Note:**

> hi hi hello!! this is short but i think i summarized it good?? idk. i might write more to this later on, who knows, i really like this idea _and_ have something more to it planned if this short thing was liked by yall or something.
> 
> anyways, have a good day!! i hope you enjoyed it and i cant wait to see what do you all think of it!! <3


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